In the early 1900s, there were banks in all the small towns of Oconee County…Bishop, Bogart, Eastville, Farmington and Watkinsville. When the Depression came along in 1929, all the banks went broke and Oconee County was without a bank for the next 30 years. In 1958, a group of community leaders recognized the need for a bank in Oconee County and started a process of getting the necessary approval for a state chartered community bank. In 1959, they announced that the FDIC had approved a community bank and Oconee State Bank opened its doors for business on February 1, 1960 with 3 employees and a small corner office on Main Street in downtown Watkinsville. Because the local people had lost money in banks that went broke, it was important for the founders to promote the bank as a “locally-owned bank” that would be owned by local citizens who purchased original shares of stock. Thus, it would be a true community bank. One of the strengths of the bank was that it knew its customers and focused on serving the community as well as taking care of its employees and customers. Today, Oconee State Bank has 4 full-service branches located in Oconee County, Clarke County, and Gwinnett County, GA as well as a website which serves as an “Internet Branch.” In December 2004, the H. Mell Wells Operations Center and Rosella E. Hansford Learning Center were dedicated. Wells served as President of Oconee State Bank from 1979 until 1986. Hansford was one of the first employees of the Bank and served as the Bank’s trainer for years. In June 2021, Oconee State Bank opened its Corporate Headquarters in Downtown Watkinsville, directly beside the Main Office Financial Center. The Headquarters host departments including Marketing, Deposit and Loan Operations, IT, and more. The vision of the founders continues today. We are proud to provide an unparalleled commitment to personalized service, value-added products, and a deep sense of responsibility to the communities we serve. We truly understand what community banking is all about. Oconee State Bank‘s social media policy is that access may be terminated if users upload or make accessible infringing content. To request image removal, please email contact information and image title/details to [email protected]. Oconee State Bank fully supports protecting children’s online identities and privacy. Our page is not directed at children and we do not collect personal information online from or about children under the age 13. Oconee State Bank reminds users to never disclose personal banking information on this site. Have a banking question? Email [email protected]
